Integrated pipe handling system for well completion and production

ABSTRACT

A novel integrated pipe handling system and method is provided wherein one or more pipe tubs having lift arms can be loaded with pipe and transported to a drill site where it may be deployed next to a pipe handling trailer. The pipe tubs and pipe handling trailer are arranged such that when the lift arms are raised, pipes may roll from a tub to the trailer, where a pipe is transferred to an angularly adjustable trough on the trailer. The trough may be raised to a preselected position and the pipe moved along the trough by a skate such that the pipe is available to be transferred from the pipe handling trailer to a drilling rig. The process may be reversed to remove pipe from the drilling rig. A control system, which may be operated in a manual or automated mode, is used to operate the integrated system using information about each pipe joint recorded during the loading process.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the invention relates to an integrated pipe handling systemfor use in oil and gas well drilling. In particular, the inventionrelates to an automated and integrated system for delivering pipe to awell in previously loaded containers, transferring the pipe to a pipehandling apparatus, and delivering the pipe to a drilling rig for use indrilling, casing and well completion operations. The automated andintegrated system may also receive used pipe from the drilling rig andtransfer the pipe from a pipe handling apparatus back to the containersfor transport away from the well site.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the conventional drilling of an oil and gas well, a number of drillpipes (each approximately 30 feet in length) are connected together, forexample by threaded connections, to form the drill string used to drillthe well bore. Each section of drill pipe is often referred to as adrill pipe joint. A borehole assembly (BHA), which includes the drillbit, is connected to the lower end of the drill string. The drill stringis typically suspended from the derrick and rotated by a rotary tablelocated on the floor of the drill rig.

As the drilling operation proceeds deeper into the earth, additionaldrill pipe joints must be connected to the existing string at thedrilling rig floor and lowered into the borehole. Certain of the drillpipe joints may be fitted with collars or spacers or other accessoriesused, for example, to keep the drill string spaced from the well borewall, or jars or sensors. For deeper wells, it may be necessary toconnect hundreds of drill pipe joints together to drill the well bore tothe desired depth, which may be many thousands of feet below thesurface.

In addition, it is desirable to stabilize the well bore and to isolatethe bore from the surrounding earth formation. This is done by cementingtubular casing in the well. Casing may be added in stages. For example,surface casing may be run into the well after drilling about 500-1,000feet. Subsequently, intermediate casing, which has a smaller diameterthan the surface casing, may be run into the well over the next severalthousand feet. Finally, production casing having yet a smaller diametermay be run into the well to the depth and location of the productionzone.

When casing is added, the drill string must first be removed, or trippedout of, the well. As the drill string is removed, the drill pipe jointsmust be disassembled from the drill string and stored temporarily forlater use. If no further drilling is anticipated, the drill joints aredisassembled and prepared for shipment off site. Casing is run into thewell in segments (typically in lengths of about forty feet), connectedend to end, for example, by threaded connections. The casing segmentsmay be referred to as casing joints. The casing string is cemented inplace by pumping cement at high pressure into the well where it isforced up the annulus between the outer surface of the casing and theside of the well bore. After surface or intermediate casing is cementedin place, the drill string is tripped back into the well to drill to afurther depth using a drill bit having a smaller diameter than usedpreviously. In this process, the drill pipe joints used previously areagain connected one by one as the drill string is lowered into the well,and additional drill pipe joints are added as the hole is furtherdrilled to a lower depth.

Drilling may proceed in a vertical or near vertical direction to acertain depth, for example as much as 7,000 to 10,000 feet. Thereafter,the direction of the well bore may deviate from vertical. Knowntechniques exist whereby a well bore can be turned, or dog legged, froman approximately vertical orientation to an approximately horizontalorientation. Thereafter, drilling may continue along a horizontal lengthof up to several thousand feet into the target production zone. Althougheach drill pipe joint is relatively rigid, the drill string collectivelyis flexible due to its large length relative to the diameter of thedrill pipe joints.

Once the well has been drilled to the desired depth, including anyhorizontal offset, the well must be completed. The drill string mustagain be tripped out of the well and the drill pipe joints disassembledfrom one another. Next, the production string is run into the well. Theproduction string is made up of segments of production tubing connectedend to end, for example by threaded connections. The production tubingprovides a conduit for the oil or gas to travel from the production zoneto the surface.

As can be appreciated, the process of producing a well involves manysteps during which the drilling, casing and completion operation must beinterrupted to add joints to the string as the string is lowered intothe well or remove joints as the string is lifted from the well. Theseoperations are also interrupted when it is necessary to trip the drillstring in its entirety out of the well. It is desirable to increase theefficiency of these operations in order to minimize the time necessaryto drill, case and complete a well. Doing so diminishes costs for thedrill operator and thus increases profit, and may determine the economicviability of a particular well project.

Drill pipe joints, casing joints and production tubing segments,sometimes referred to collectively herein as pipes, are typically storedhorizontally on racks located near the drilling rig prior to beinglifted to the drilling rig floor and deployed into the well. These pipescan weigh from several hundred to in excess of a thousand pounds and aretypically handled with machinery. Typically, a gripping and hoistingdevice may be employed to transfer pipes from racks adjacent thedrilling rig to a catwalk, and then to further transfer the pipes up aramp to the drilling rig floor where they can be added to the drillstring. Such a system is described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No.6,976,540 to Berry. Other systems employ a power swivel, which engagesthe threads on the pipe before lifting it to the drilling rig floor.Still other systems employ elevators or clamps to lift a pipe to thedrilling rig floor. Other systems have used pipe handling trailers totransfer pipe to the drilling rig floor, for example, U.S. Pat. No.9,388,647.

Pipes are typically transported to the well site by truck and loaded andaligned onto the racks by forklift or crane. This process makes itchallenging to keep track of the individual pipes and the number ofpipes ready for deployment into the well in an automated or centralizedfashion. It is also challenging to systematically or automaticallycontrol the order in which the pipes are added to the drill, casing orproduction string. In addition, the size and weight of the pipes makesthem potentially dangerous to the personnel working on or near thedrilling rig.

It is therefore desirable to improve the efficiency of the process ofdelivering pipes to a well site on the proper schedule and to track eachindividual pipe and tally the number of pipes ready for deployment intothe well, and returned after removal from the well. It is furtherdesirable to have an integrated system in which each pipe is pre-sortedinto containers prior to arrival at the well site and transferred in anautomated fashion from the containers to the drilling rig floor. Such anintegrated system streamlines and organizes the process of deliveringpipes to and removing pipes from the drilling rig floor, therebyincreasing efficiency and ultimately the profitability of the drillingrig. It is also desirable to improve the safety of the workers aroundthe pipes by having an integrated system that automates pipe handlingfunctions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

These shortcomings of the prior art are addressed by providing anintegrated pipe handling system and method comprising one or moremovable containers for storing and transporting cylindrical objects suchas drill pipe joints and a movable platform for receiving thosecylindrical objects and transferring them to the drilling rig. Themovable containers comprise unique and novel features including, but notlimited to lift arms, indexing racks, crossover racks and a controlsystem as herein described and set forth in the claims. The movableplatform contains unique and novel features including, but not limitedto, an angularly movable surface for moving cylindrical objects at anangle and a skate slidably movable along the angularly movable surfacefor supporting a cylindrical object at a plurality of positions alongthe angularly movable surface as herein described and claimed. Otherunique and novel features such as a skate clamp, pipe clamp and pop-upstop as herein described and set forth in the claims.

A control system is also provided and may be used in a manual mode or anautomatic mode to operate the movable containers and movable platform.In addition, information about each cylindrical object, such as itsunique identifier, type, length, diameter and weight may be contained ona label, barcode, RFID tag or the like affixed to the object and may berecorded when the cylindrical objects are loaded into the movablecontainers. Information about the movable containers, such as a uniqueidentifier, for example a number or alphanumeric code, may also berecorded. This information may be used to control the operation of theintegrated system to ensure that the correct pipe is delivered to andremoved from the drilling rig in the correct order without wasted timeor effort.

These and other aspects of the invention are described more fully belowin the detailed description of the invention and the drawings, and areset forth in the accompanying claims appended hereto.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Appended FIGS. 1-27 depict certain non-limiting embodiments of theintegrated pipe handling system described herein. The figures are notintended to limit the scope of the invention but, instead, are intendedto provide depictions of specific embodiments, features and non-limitingcharacteristics of the systems described herein.

FIGS. 1A and 1B depict a typical drilling rig with pipes arrangedhorizontally in a conventional manner near the drilling rig.

FIG. 2 depicts a perspective view of the delivery and arrangement ofpipe tubs and pipe handling trailer with respect to the well asdescribed herein.

FIG. 3 depicts an end view of tubs and pipe handling trailer arrangedfor the delivery of pipes from tubs to pipe handling trailer asdescribed herein.

FIG. 4 depicts a perspective view of a pipe tub as described herein.

FIG. 5 depicts a top view of a pipe tub as described herein.

FIG. 6A depicts a cross-sectional view of a pipe tub taken along line6A-6A in FIG. 5.

FIG. 6B depicts a closer view of a portion of FIG. 6A.

FIGS. 7A and 7B depict perspective views taken from different angles ofa lift arm of a pipe tub as described herein.

FIG. 8 depicts a perspective view of a pipe indexer assembly asdescribed herein.

FIG. 9 depicts a perspective view of pipes being loaded into a tub priorto delivery to a well site as described herein.

FIG. 10 depict a cross sectional view taken along line 10-10 of FIG. 11of a pipe tub loaded with pipe as described herein.

FIG. 11 depicts a perspective view of empty and full pipe tubs arrangedrelative to a pipe handling trailer at the well site as describedherein.

FIG. 12 depicts a pipe handling trailer with a V-trough and skate in araised position as described herein.

FIG. 13A depicts a cross sectional view of a skate assembly and skatedrive mechanism as described herein.

FIG. 13B depicts a perspective view of a skate assembly with a clamp armin a raised position as described herein.

FIG. 13C depicts a perspective view of a skate assembly with a clamp armin a lowered position as described herein.

FIG. 13D depicts a perspective view of a skate assembly with a clamp armin a raised position engaging a pipe as described herein.

FIG. 13E depicts a cross sectional view of a skate drive mechanism asdescribed herein.

FIG. 14A depicts a perspective view of a pipe disposed between a skateassembly and a pop-up stop on a V-trough as described herein.

FIG. 14B depicts a cut away view of a portion of the V-trough showing anactuation mechanism for a pop-up stop.

FIG. 15A depicts an end-on view of the V-trough showing a pipe clampengaging a pipe thereon.

FIG. 15B depicts a perspective view of the V-trough in an extendedposition showing a pipe clamp engaging a pipe thereon.

FIG. 16 is an end view of a portion of a pipe tub and pipe handlingtrailer with a pipe in position to be transferred from tub to trailer asdescribed herein.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart depicting the automatic operation of a pipehandling trailer control module delivering pipe from pipe trailer todrilling rig as described herein.

FIG. 18 depicts an end view of tubs and a pipe handling trailer arrangedfor the delivery of pipes from pipe handling trailer to tubs asdescribed herein.

FIG. 19 depicts a perspective view of a pipe handling trailer with apipe in position to be ejected by pipe kickers as described herein.

FIG. 20 depicts an end view of a portion of a pipe tub and pipe handlingtrailer with a pipe in position to be transferred from trailer to tub asdescribed herein.

FIG. 21 depicts a perspective view of a pipe tub and pipe handlingtrailer with a pipe in position to be transferred from trailer to tub asdescribed herein.

FIG. 22 is a flowchart depicting the automatic operation of a tubcontrol module delivering pipe from tub to pipe trailer as describedherein.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart depicting the automatic operation of a pipehandling trailer control module receiving pipe from a drilling rig ontopipe handling trailer as described herein.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart depicting the automatic operation of a tubcontrol module receiving pipe from pipe trailer into a tub as describedherein.

FIG. 25 is a schematic diagram showing the components and functions ofan integrated pipe handling control system as described herein.

FIG. 26 depicts a close perspective view of two adjacent filled pipetubs as described herein.

FIG. 27 depicts a closer in perspective view of FIG. 26 showing moredetail of the arrangement of racks between the two tubs as describedherein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

An exemplary drilling rig 1 is shown schematically in FIG. 1A. Drillingrig 1 includes derrick 10. Travelling block 11 is suspended from the topof derrick 10. A hook on the travelling block suspends a swivel 12,which is free to rotate in a horizontal plane. Alternatively, travellingblock may suspend a direct drive motor (not shown). Kelly drive 13 isrotated by turntable 14 located on drilling rig floor 15 and engages thetop of a drill joint through a bushing (not shown). Drilling fluid ispumped through the tubulars into the well via flexible hose 16. Thedrill string 17 is lowered into the well bore 18 as drilling proceeds.In later operations, casing joints and completion tubing is lowered intothe well through the bore 18. Pipe rack 20 is located near derrick 10and carries a plurality of pipes 22 typically arrayed horizontally asshown in FIG. 1B.

Pipe Tubs

In one embodiment of the integrated pipe handling system of the presentinvention, pipes are delivered in a pre-sorted manner in tubs that areplaced near the drilling rig prior to deployment into the well.Referring to FIG. 2, one or more tubs 100 containing pipes 22 aredelivered to well site 100, for example, by a flatbed trailer 104. Eachtub may be assigned a unique identifier, for example a number oralphanumeric code, which is used by the control system, described below.At the well site, tubs 102 are aligned substantially parallel to oneanother and to pipe handler trailer 105 such that pipes can roll from atub toward pipe handler trailer 105 in a manner that will be describedbelow. Pipe handler trailer 105 is generally aligned such that thevertical projection of its central longitudinal axis on the ground 106intersects well bore 18 substantially through the well center.

Referring to FIG. 3, each tub 102 includes adjustable feet 110 operableto control the tilt of the tub, including about its longitudinal axis.Feet 110 may be adjusted by, for example, a hydraulic motor (not shown)operated by a control system as discussed further below. Feet 110 may beadjusted such that tubs 102 are angled at a slight incline, for exampleabout 1.5°, toward pipe handler trailer 105. Where multiple tubs aredeployed, the feet on each tub may be adjusted to the correct height sothat a substantially smooth, inclined slope is formed substantially in aplane 112 parallel to the tops of each tub as shown in FIG. 3. Plane 112is angled at a slight incline, for example, 1.5°, toward pipe handlertrailer 105 so that pipe may roll from tubs 102 toward pipe handlingtrailer 105 as described below. Adjustable landing gear 304 of pipehandling trailer 105 may also be adjusted so that pipe handling traileris inclined at a slight angle away from tubs 102 such that pipe 22 mayroll over trailer bed 302 and into V-trough 300 as described below.

Referring to FIGS. 4-6, tub 102 includes side frame members 120 a and120 b and end frame members 122 a and 122 b. Side frame members maycomprise a plurality of vertical and diagonal members 124, 125 and uppermember 121. End frame members 122 a and 122 b may include a plurality ofhorizontal beams 126 attached to vertical corner posts 128 preferably bywelding. Each corner post 128 includes pin 129 for pivotally attachinglift arms 150 disposed at the tub ends (see FIGS. 6A-7B). The tub bottommay be formed by bottom beams 130 attached between bottom rails 131,preferably by welding. The tub bottom may also include additional bottomdiagonal beams 132 disposed between side frame members 120 a and 120 bto impart strength and stability to the tub.

Referring to FIGS. 6A, 6B, 7A, 7B, lift arms 150 may include verticalside wall 152, bottom frame members 154 a, 154 b, 154 c, andcylindrically shaped raising arm 156, all of which may be connectedtogether such as by welds. Vertical hangar posts 158 may be attached toside wall 152 and one or more bottom frame members 154 a, 154 b, 154 c.Pivot holes 159 for receiving pins 129 are disposed in vertical hangarposts 158 for pivotally mounting lift arms 150 relative to tub 102.Piston 165 is pivotally attached at one end to bottom rail 131 via pivotpoint 167 and pivotally attached at its other end to piston rod 164.Bottom frame member 154 a further includes flanges 160 for engaging withpiston rod 164 to pivot lift arm 150 relative to tub 102 about a pivotaxis formed through pin 129 and pivot hole 159 via the driving force ofpiston 165.

Tub 102 may also include a plurality of removable L-shaped drop-in racks135.

A shorter leg of drop-in rack 135 may removably engage a hollow pocket136 disposed on upper member 121 of end frame members 120 a and 120 bsuch that the top surface of the longer leg of drop-in rack 135 is flushwith the top surface of upper member 121 (see FIGS. 26-27). Some tubsmay include drop-in racks 135 on both sides such as shown in FIG. 5.Drop-in racks 135 may include a proximity switch or other sensor (notshown) to sense the presence of a pipe on or near drop-in rack 135. Thetub arranged closest to pipe handler trailer 105 at wellsite 100 mayinclude pipe indexer assembly 140 on the side closest to pipe handlertrailer 105 such as shown in FIG. 4. Some tubs may include pipe indexerassembly 140 on both sides to enable the tub to be positioned on eitherside of pipe handling trailer 105.

As shown in FIG. 8, pipe indexer assembly 140 may include top and bottomframe members 141 a, 141 b, and side frame members 142 a, 142 b. The topsurface of top frame member 141 a may be flush with the top surface ofupper side frame member 121. Stop plate 143 may be attached to top framemember 141 a at one end and projects above the top surface of top framemember 141 a. Indexing plate 144 may contain projection 145 and may bepivotally attached at one end to top frame member 141 a through pivotaxis 146 and may be pivotally attached to piston rod 148 through pivotaxis 147 a at its other end. A proximity switch or like sensor (notshown) may be located on top frame member 141 a near indexing plate 144to detect the presence of a pipe 22 at or near the location ofprojections 145. Pipe indexer assembly 140 may be pivotally attached tovertical side frame member 124 so as to allow pipe indexer assembly 140to swing outward from side frame 120 a, 120 b about vertical pivot axis147 b to an operating position approximately 90° from a storage positionparallel to side frame member 120 a, 120 b. Pipe indexer assembly 140also may include piston 149 attached to side frame 120 a of tub 102 toactuate indexing plate 144 from a position wherein projection 145 blockspipe 22 from rolling toward pipe handling trailer 105 to a positionwhere pipe 22 is not blocked (see FIG. 14).

Tub Loading

Prior to deployment at the well site, tubs 102 may be loaded with pipes22. Pipes 22 may include, for example, drill pipe joints, casing jointsor production tubing segments. Referring to FIG. 9, pipes 22 may bearrayed on racks 200 prior to loading into tub 102. Racks 200 and tub102 may be adjusted generally level with respect to the ground. Liftarms 150 may be raised such that raising arms 156 are at a levelslightly below the top surface of top side frame member 121. Pipe 22 maybe rolled into tub 102 using machinery such as a forklift or by manpowerfrom racks 200 over drop-in racks 135 and onto raising arms 156. After acomplete row of pipes have been rolled onto raising arms 156, lift arms150 may be lowered to a level such that spacers 170 (see FIG. 10) may beinstalled over the row of pipe loaded into the tub and the tub is readyto receive the next row of pipe. The process may be repeated until thetub is filled with pipe.

Information about each pipe 22, such as its unique identifier, type,length, diameter and weight may be contained on a label, barcode, RFIDtag or the like affixed to the pipe. The information about each pipe maybe recorded as it enters tub 102. In addition, information as to thetotal number of pipes loaded into the tub, and the order in which thepipes are loaded into the tub, may be recorded. Such information may berecorded manually by an operator, for example, by keying in informationon a computer or mobile device such as a smartphone or tablet orterminal equipped with the necessary application software.Alternatively, an operator may use a scanning device to scan a label,bar code or RFID tag affixed to each individual pipe 22 that containsinformation about that pipe. In yet another alternative, a scanning orother sensing apparatus may be positioned to automatically record barcode or RFID tag information affixed to each pipe as it is loaded intotub 102. The information about each pipe and the number and order ofpipes loaded into the tub may be stored in memory associated withcontrol system 500, as described below. In addition, each tub 102 may beassigned a unique identification number or code, which may be encoded ona label, barcode, RFID tag or the like, and is recorded manually by anoperator or scanned by equipment as described above. Information aboutthe identification of each tub 102 may also be stored in memoryassociated with the tub control system and correlated to the informationabout the pipes contained within the tub as described below.

Pipes 22 may be loaded into tub 102 such that they are stored in tub 102in multiple rows, as shown in FIG. 10. Sensors (not shown) may beinstalled within tub 102 to sense the presence of one or more rows ofpipes. The initial row of pipes loaded into the tub rest on top ofraising arms 156 of lift arms 150, which are raised to a position belowthe level of the top surface of upper side frame member 121 by theaction of pistons 165 as previously described. Once a complete row ofpipes are loaded into tub 102, an operator may install a separator abovethe row of pipes. A suitable separator may include a spacer 170 composedof a hardwood or other material that will not readily deform or warpunder the weight of the pipes and that has a smooth, flat surface toenable pipes to roll over spacer 170. A subsequent row of pipes then maybe loaded into tub 102 by lowering lift arms 150 by a distanceapproximately equal to the diameter of the pipes plus the height ofspacer 170, and allowing the row of pipes 22 to be rolled into tub 102.Another spacer 170 then may be installed above the second row of pipes.This operation may be repeated to fill tub 102 with multiple rows ofpipes 22 such as shown in FIG. 10. Upon completion of loading, crossoverracks 134 (see FIGS. 2, 10) may be installed at the top of tub 102 suchas by fitting ends of crossover racks 134 into pockets formed in uppermembers 121 of side frame members 120 a, 120 b such that the top surfaceof crossover racks 134 are generally flush with the top surfaces ofupper members 121. Tub 102 may then be transported to well site 100, forexample, by truck.

Pipe Handling Trailer

The integrated pipe handling system may also include pipe handlingtrailer 105. Pipe handling trailer 105 may include V-shaped troughassembly 300 which can be raised or lowered at an angle relative to thelevel of trailer bed 302 by a hydraulic motor (not shown). WhileV-shaped trough 300 is generally described herein as v-shaped in crosssection, it is understood that the trough may have other cross-sectionshapes suitable for retaining pipe, such as a u-shape. Referring to FIG.11, pipe handling trailer 105 may also include adjustable telescopinglanding gear 304 operated by hydraulic motors (not shown) to leveltrailer bed 302 or incline trailer bed to a desired angle relative tothe ground. Pipe handling trailer may include picker arms 306 fortransferring pipe from indexing assembly 140 of the closest tub to pipehandling trailer 105 as described below. Picker arms 306 may bepivotally attached to pipe handling trailer 105 and may be actuated bypistons 308 (see FIG. 14). Picker arms 306 may include telescopingmembers that allow the length of picker arms 306 to be adjusted relativeto the location of tub 102 at the well site to enable picker arms 306 tointeract with pipe indexing assembly 140 as described below. Picker arms306 may also include raised stop portions 310 that project above the topsurface of the picker arm. Picker arms 306 may be located on both sidesof pipe handling trailer 105 to allow tubs to be positioned on either orboth sides of pipe handling trailer at the well site.

Referring to FIG. 12, V-shaped trough assembly 300 may be slidablymounted at one of its ends 300 a to pipe handling trailer 105. Troughextension 315 may be assembled onto the other end 300 b of V-troughassembly, such as by bolting, to support pipe 22 as it is raised towardor lowered from the drilling rig floor as described below.Alternatively, trough extension 315 may be constructed as a telescopingmember that extends outwardly from V-trough assembly 300. V-troughassembly 300 may be pivotally mounted at a location intermediate itsends to one end of trough support 318. Trough support 318 may bepivotally mounted at its other end to pipe handling trailer 105.V-trough assembly may be raised or lowered by hydraulic piston 320pivotally attached to V-trough assembly 300 at one end and to pipehandling trailer 105 at its other end. An angular sensor may be locatedat end 300 a of V-trough assembly 300 to measure the angle ofinclination of V-trough assembly 300 relative to trailer bed 302.V-trough assembly 300 may also include skate assembly 330 slidablymounted in trough for translating pipe 22 along the trough toward thedrilling rig floor as further described below.

Referring to FIGS. 13A-D, skate assembly 330 may include skate clamp bar332 mounted to a first clamp arm 334 such as by fasteners. Skate clampbar 332 may be orthogonally adjustable relative to first clamp arm 334.First clamp arm 334 may be pivotally mounted to skate clamp support 335and to second clamp arms 338. Skate clamp support 335 is fixed to pushplate 337 such as by welding. Second clamp arms 338 may be pivotallymounted to flange 336. First and second skate body 340 a, 340 b may beconfigured as an open box structure constructed from plates such asshown in FIGS. 13B-C. First and second skate body 340 a, 340 b slidealong rail 342. Flange 336 is fixed to first skate body 340 a such as bywelding. Skate clamp support 335 and push plate 337 are fixed to secondskate body 340 b such as by welding. Skate clamp support 335 is slidablyconnected to flange 336 through pins 342 a, 342 b configured to slidewithin slot 344 (FIG. 13C). Pins 342 a, 342 b are preferably adjustablypositioned within slot 344 in order to adjust the separation distancebetween pins 342 a, 342 b.

First skate body 340 a is attached to endless skate chain 350 throughconnector 354 attached at both ends to links in skate chain 350. Skatechain 350 is engaged with drive pulley 352 at one end thereof and idlerpulley 353 at the other end thereof. Drive pulley 352 may be driven bydrive motor chain 356, which is driven by drive motor pulley 355. Drivemotor pulley 355 may be driven by a drive motor (not shown) that may bepowered by pipe handling trailer 105 (see FIG. 13E).

Skate assembly 330 may thus be arranged such that when first skate body340 a is driven toward the end 300 b of V-trough 300 closest to the well(clockwise as viewed in FIG. 13A), first skate body 340 a and flange 336will slide toward second skate body 340 b and skate clamp support 335and the end of slot 344 closest to pin 342 a will contact pin 342 a.This motion will cause first and second clamp arms 334, 338 and skateclamp bar 332 to rotate in a counterclockwise direction as viewed inFIG. 13A, and raise skate clamp bar 332 away from V-trough 300 and anypipe 22 that is in V-trough 300. When first skate body 340 a is driventoward end 300 a of V-trough 300 farthest away from the well, firstskate body 340 a will slide away from second skate body 340 b until theend of slot 344 closest to pin 342 b contacts pin 342 b. This motionwill cause first and second clamp arms 334, 338 and skate clamp bar 332to rotate in a clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 13A, and lowerskate clamp bar 332 toward V-trough 300 and any pipe 22 that is inV-trough 300. The position of skate clamp bar 332 relative to firstclamp arm 334, and the positions of pins 342 a, 342 b, may be adjustedsuch that skate clamp bar 332 engages butt end 22 a of pipe 22 (see FIG.13D) when pipe 22 is being removed from the work floor of the drillingrig at a relatively shallow angle, as described below.

Referring to FIGS. 14A-14B, V-trough 300 may include pop-up stop 370 andpipe clamp 372 located near end 300 b of V-trough 300 closest to thedrilling rig. Pop-up stop 370 may be pivotally mounted intermediate itsends to flange 373 located beneath the surface of V-trough 300. Pop-upstop 370 may protrude through a slot in the top surface of V-trough 300when actuated by a piston 374 and piston rod 376, which may be pivotallyattached to pop-up stop 370 through a yoke 378 at the end of pop-up stop370 opposite V-trough 300. As skate assembly pushes pipe 22 toward end300 b of V-trough 300 nearest the drilling rig, pop-up stop 370 may bemoved to its raised position such that the end of pipe 22 opposite pushplate 337 abuts against pop-up stop 370. The position of skate assembly330 at the point where pipe 22 abuts pop-up stop 370 may be measuredusing a rotary encoder or like sensor (not shown) associated with drivepulley 352 or idler pulley 353 and capable of measuring the rotation ofdrive pulley 352 or idler pulley 353. Information from the rotaryencoder may be transmitted to the control system to confirm the lengthof pipe 22 in V-trough 300 before the pipe is transferred to thedrilling rig, as described below.

Referring to FIGS. 15A-15B, pipe clamp 372 may be lowered by clamp motor375 to engage pipe 22 resting on V-trough 300 after pipe 22 has beenraised to a position where it is ready to be transferred to the drillingrig floor. The engagement of pipe clamp 372 with pipe 22 allows a powerswivel (not shown) to be coupled to pipe 22 by rotating the swivelrelative to pipe 22 and engaging with the threads on the pipe. After thepower swivel has been coupled to pipe 22, pipe clamp 372 may be raisedto a position where it no longer engages pipe 22. Pipe 22 may then belifted by power swivel from V-trough 300 to the drilling rig floor.

A power swivel may also be used to lower pipe 22 from the drilling rigfloor to V-trough 300 of pipe handling trailer 105. In this operation,pipe 22 is placed onto V-trough 300 and abuts push plate 337. Pipe clamp372 may be lowered into engagement with pipe 22 to enable the powerswivel to be de-coupled from pipe 22 by rotating the swivel in adirection to unthread the swivel from the pipe.

Transferring Pipe from Tubs to Pipe Handling Trailer

Referring to FIG. 16, pipe 22 may be transferred to pipe handlingtrailer 105 using pipe indexer assembly 140. Pipes 22 may roll fromcrossover racks 134 installed on tub 102 closest to pipe handlingtrailer 105 or from raised lift arms 150 within tub 102 closest to pipehandling trailer 105 onto top frame member 141 a of pipe indexerassembly 140 and come to rest against projection 145. Piston 149 may beactuated by a motor (not shown) to cause indexing plate 144 to rotateclockwise as viewed in FIG. 16 through the action of piston rod 148.This rotation lowers projection 145 below the surface of top framemember 141 a to allow a single pipe 22 closest to pipe handling trailer105 to roll toward and come to rest against stop plate 143. Picker arm306 may be rotated by the action of piston 308 to pick up pipe 22 andlift it such that pipe 22 rolls from picker arm 306 into V-shaped trough300.

Pipes 22 may be off-loaded from tubs 102 in any order desired. The orderchosen may depend on the identity or quantity of pipe contained in thetubs or the order in which the tubs have been delivered to the well siteand arranged near pipe handling trailer 105. FIG. 11 illustrates anexample in which pipes 22 have been emptied from the tub farthest frompipe handling trailer 105. To off-load pipe from a particular tub, whichmay be designated the active tub, crossover racks 134 are first removedfrom the active tub. The operator will ensure that crossover racks 134remain installed on any tubs between the active tub and pipe handlingtrailer 105 and that drop-in racks 135 are installed between the activetub and all tubs between the active tub and the pipe handling trailer(see FIGS. 26-27) and also that pipe indexing assemblies 140 areinstalled to create a smooth path for pipes to roll toward pipe handlingtrailer 105. Lift arms 150 within the active tub may be raised such thatthe top row of pipe is raised above top surface of top frame member 121of tub side frame member 120 b such that pipe 22 is able to roll overseparator 170, drop-in racks 135 and crossover racks 134 installed ontubs between the active tub and pipe handling trailer until pipe 22reaches pipe indexing assembly 140 as shown in FIG. 16. If any tubbetween the active tub and pipe handling trailer 105 is empty of pipe,crossover racks 134 may be reinstalled onto the empty tub to create arolling path for pipe 22. Alternatively, lift arms 150 of the empty tubmay be raised such that the top surface of raising arm 156 is generallyflush with top surface of top frame member 121 to allow pipe 22 to rollover the empty tub by rolling over raising arm 156.

Once the top row of pipe has been off-loaded from the active tub,sensors located in the tub or on drop-in racks 135 or on pipe indexerassembly 140 may sense that pipe has been off-loaded and the next row isready to be off-loaded. The operator will manually remove spacer 170 toexpose the next row of pipe in the active tub. Lift arms 150 are raisedto a position that allows the next row of pipe to roll toward pipehandling trailer 105 as just described. When all rows of pipe have beenoff-loaded from the active tub, tub sensor will indicate that the tub isempty of pipe.

The unloading of pipe 22 from tubs 102 may be controlled manually by anoperator using controls operable to actuate lift arms 150 and pipeindexer assembly 140 on tubs 102 and pickers arms 306, V-trough 300 andskate assembly 330 on pipe handling trailer 105. Alternatively,referring to FIG. 22, the unloading of pipes 22 from tubs 102 may beautomatically controlled by tub control module 500 in an automatic mode.A sensor on pipe indexer assembly 140 may sense whether a pipe ispresent on the indexer abutting projection 145 (see FIG. 14) at step501. If a pipe is present, a sensor on pipe handling trailer 105 senseswhether picker arms 306 on the side of the trailer facing the tub are inthe lowered position at step 502. If the picker arms 306 are not in thelowered position, they are lowered by pistons 308 at step 503. When thepicker arms 306 are sensed to be in their lowered position, piston 149actuates indexing plate 144 through piston rod 148 to rotate plate 144to lower projection 145 to allow one pipe 22 to roll toward stopprojection 143 (see FIG. 14) at step 504. Angular sensor associated withV-trough 300 and rotary encoder associated with skate assembly 330 sensewhether V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 are in their loweredposition at step 505. If not, V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 arepositioned in their lowered position through activation of the V-troughhydraulic piston 320 and skate drive motor pulley 352 at step 506. OnceV-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 are in their lowered position,picker arms 306 may be actuated by pistons 308 to lift a single pipe 22that has rolled against stop plate 143 from top surface 141 a of pipeindexing assembly 140 at step 507. Picker arms 306 may then be raised toan angle such that pipe rolls from picker arms 306, over trailer bed 302and into V-trough 300. At step 508, pipe handler control module 400 maybe activated to deliver pipe 22 to the drilling rig as described inconnection with FIG. 17.

If no pipe is sensed to be present on pipe indexer assembly 140 at step501, pipe must be delivered to pipe indexer assembly 140 from a tub. Ifnot already previously selected, the operator may select which tub isthe active tub from which pipe will be off-loaded at step 510. Selectionof which tub to be the active tub may be influenced by the informationabout pipes 22 previously stored when the tubs were loaded. For example,if the stored information indicates that the tub farthest from pipehandling trailer 105 contains drill pipe joints of a size suitable foruse in the drill string that drills the initial well bore, that tub maybe selected as the active tub.

At step 511, the sensor associated with the active tub may sense whetherpipe is loaded in the active tub. If no pipe is present in the activetub, the operator may be prompted to select a different active tub. Atstep 512, if pipe is present in the active tub, a row of pipes is raisedso as to clear the top surface of top frame member 121 of tub side framemember 120 b as previously described. At step 513, the sensor associatedwith the active tub or alternatively a sensor on drop-in rack 135 on theactive tub senses whether the row of pipe has been off-loaded. If not,automatic operation may be paused to enable to operator to investigatewhether a fault has occurred at step 514. If the row of pipe has beensuccessfully off-loaded, the operator is alerted to remove spacer 170over the next row of pipe at step 515. Automatic operation may thenresume at step 511.

Transferring Pipe to Drilling Rig Floor

V-trough 300 contains magnetic sensors (not shown) for sensing thepresence of pipe 22 in the trough. In addition, drive pulley 352 oridler pulley 353 may include a rotary encoder or like sensor (not shown)capable of measuring the pulley rotation as previously described. Skatechain 350 may further include metal plate 358 that interacts with one ormore additional magnetic sensors (not shown) that are positioned alongV-trough 300 to measure the position of skate assembly 330 alongV-trough 300.

The operation of pipe handling trailer 105 may be controlled manually byan operator using controls operable to actuate V-trough 300, skateassembly 330, pop-up stop 370 and pipe clamp 372. Alternatively,referring to FIG. 17, pipe handler control module 400 may control theoperation of pipe handling trailer 105 in an automatic mode to deliverpipe to the drilling rig floor. At step 401, the presence of pipe 22 inV-trough 300 is first sensed by magnetic sensors associated withV-trough 300. If no pipe is present, the system is paused at step 412until a pipe is delivered to V-trough 300. If pipe is present, at step402, skate drive motor pulley 352 and pop-up drive piston 374 areactuated to push pipe against pop-up stop 370. To shorten the time for apipe lifting cycle, the movement of the pipe against pop-up stop 370 maytake place simultaneously with lifting of V-trough 300 by hydraulicpiston 320. At step 403, a determination is made by the control modulewhether the pipe in V-trough 300 matches the expected length of the pipebased on the information about the pipe previously recorded in memory.If the lengths do not match, the system pauses to enable operatorintervention at step 404. If the lengths match, a decision is madewhether to enter a training mode to train the system to remember thedesired feed height for delivering pipe 22 to drilling rig platform 15at step 405.

In a training mode, when the first pipe 22 is delivered to the drillingrig floor, the position of V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 may berecorded and saved to enable further automatic operation. In trainingmode, at step 406, V-trough 300 may be raised to an angle relative totrailer bed 302 to a sufficient height to allow delivery of pipe 22 tothe drilling rig floor. The angle of V-trough 300 may be sensed by anangular sensor located at end 300 a of V-trough assembly 300 to measurethe angle of inclination of V-trough assembly 300 relative to trailerbed 302. Skate drive motor pulley 352 may be actuated to drive skateassembly 330 toward end 300 b of V-trough 300 closest to the drillingrig such that pipe 22 is supported by extension 315 in a feed position.V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 may be moved simultaneously toshorten the time needed to carry out the necessary movements. Push plate337 abuts end 22 a of pipe 22 and pushes pipe 22 up V-trough 300 to thedesired feed height from which pipe 22 may be removed from V-trough byequipment on the drilling rig. If pipe 22 is removed using a powerswivel, pipe clamp 372 may be actuated to allow the power swivel toengage pipe 22 as previously described. The position of skate assembly330 at the desired feed height may be sensed by rotary encoder or likesensor associated with drive pulley 352 or idler pulley 353 or bysensing the presence of metal plate 358 on skate drive chain 350 by amagnetic sensor associated with V-trough 300. The sensed position ofV-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 may be recorded in memory associatedwith pipe handler control module 400 at step 407. At steps 409 and 410,the V-trough sensors are monitored until it is determined that pipe 22has been removed from V-trough 300 and lifted to the drillling rigfloor. At step 411, V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 are returned totheir initial position where they are ready to receive and deliver thenext pipe 22.

Pipe handling trailer 105 may thereafter be operated in an automaticmode in which V-trough 300 is lifted to the previously recorded heightand skate assembly 330 is driven to its previously recorded positionsuch that subsequent pipes are delivered to the drilling rig floor atthe same feed height as the first pipe. V-trough 300 and skate assembly330 may move simultaneously to economize on the time needed to carry outthe required movements. Once the presence of pipe 22 in V-trough 300 issensed in step 401 and it is determined that the pipe is of the expectedlength in step 403, automatic mode may be selected. V-trough 300 andskate assembly 330 are actuated to raise pipe 22 to the previouslyrecorded feed height in step 408. The movement of skate assembly 330 instep 408 may also be adjusted based on the previously stored informationabout the pipe. For example, if a pipe of a different length than hadbeen used in training steps 405-407 is present in V-trough 300, theextent of movement of skate assembly 330 may be adjusted to account forthe length difference in step 408 without entering training mode. Onceit has been sensed that pipe 22 has been removed from V-trough 300 atstep 409, V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 are lowered to theirinitial position in step 411 to receive the next pipe.

Removing Pipe from Drilling Rig Floor

Pipe 22 may be removed from the drilling rig floor, for example, whenthe drill string has been tripped out of the well and it is desired toremove the drill pipe joints from the drilling rig floor and return themto tubs 102. Referring to FIG. 18, adjustable feet 110 of tubs 102 maybe adjusted such that tubs 102 are angled at a slight incline, forexample about 1.5°, away from pipe handler trailer 105. Where multipletubs are deployed, the feet on each tub may be adjusted to the correctheight so that a substantially smooth, inclined slope is formedsubstantially in a plane 113 parallel to the tops of each tub as shownin FIG. 18. Plane 113 is angled at a slight incline, for example, 1.5°,away from pipe handler trailer 105 to allow pipes to roll from pipehandling trailer 105 toward tubs 102. Adjustable landing gear 304 ofpipe handling trailer 105 may also be adjusted so that pipe handlingtrailer 105 is above the level of tubs 102 and inclined at a slightangle toward tubs 102 such that pipe 22 may roll from V-trough 300 overtrailer bed 302 and toward tubs 102 as described below.

To receive pipe 22 from the drilling rig floor, skate assembly is movedto a position near end 300 b of V-trough closest to the drilling rig andV-trough 300 is lifted to a feed height suitable for receiving pipe inthe trough. Pipe 22 may be placed in V-trough 300 and supported byextension 315 using the pipe manipulating apparatus on the drilling rig.Where a power swivel is used to lower pipe 22 onto V-trough 300, pipeclamp 372 may be lowered to engage pipe to allow de-coupling of thepower swivel as previously described. Where the drilling rig floor is ata relatively large height relative to the height of trailer bed 302, forexample ten feet or more, pipe 22 placed into V-trough 300 from thedrilling rig floor may slide into contact with push plate 337 of skateassembly 330 by the force of gravity. Skate clamp bar 332 engages pipe22 as skate assembly is driven toward end 300 a of V-trough 300 awayfrom the drilling rig as previously explained. Skate clamp bar 332operates to prevent pipe 22 from being dislodged from V-trough 300 as itis lowered toward trailer bed 302.

Where the height difference between the drilling rig floor and the levelof trailer bed 302 is not as large, for example, on the order of fivefeet, the angle of V-trough 300 when raised to its pipe receivingposition may not be sufficient to cause pipe 22 to slide into contactwith push plate 337 under the force of gravity. In such a case, skateclamp bar 332 operates not only to secure pipe 22 in V-trough 300, butalso to pull pipe 22 toward end 300 a of V-trough 300 as shown in FIG.13D. This operation of skate clamp bar 332 therefore avoids the wastefuland time-consuming step of raising V-trough 300 to a greater heightafter receiving pipe 22 in order to cause pipe 22 to slide into contactwith push plate 337 under the force of gravity before lowering V-trough300 to the level of trailer bed 302.

Referring to FIG. 19, pipe handling trailer 105 includes pipe kickers309 pivotally mounted within V-trough 300. After V-trough 300 isreturned to its initial position level with trailer bed 302, pipekickers 309 may operate to lift pipe 22 from V-trough 300 and cause pipe22 to roll over trailer bed 302 and onto picker arm 306 due to theincline of pipe handling trailer 105. Pipe 22 is retained on picker arm306 by raised stop portion 310. Picker arm 306 then may be furtherlowered such that pipe 22 contacts the top surface of top frame member141 a of pipe indexer assembly 140 (see FIG. 21). As picker arm 306 islowered further, pipe 22 is released from picker arm 306 and rests ontop surface of top frame member 141 a of pipe indexer assembly 140.Piston 149 may then be actuated to rotate indexing plate 144 to lowerprojection 145 to allow pipe 22 to roll toward tub 102. Projection 145may remain in the lowered position throughout the tub re-loadingprocess. Pipe 22 may roll directly into the tub closest to pipe handlingtrailer 105 or may roll over crossover racks 134 and drop-in racks 135,or alternatively roll over raised lift arms 150 of an empty interveningtub, into a tub farther from pipe handling trailer 105.

The process of transferring pipe back to tubs 102 may be controlledmanually by an operator using controls to actuate V-trough 300, skateassembly 330, pipe kickers 309 and picker arms 306 of pipe handlingtrailer 105. Alternatively, referring to FIG. 23, pipe handler controlmodule 400 may control the operation of pipe handling trailer 105 in anautomatic mode to remove pipe from the drilling rig floor. V-trough 300and skate assembly 330 are raised to the desired feed height at step451. The movement of V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 may take placesimultaneously to economize on the time necessary to complete themovement. The height of V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 may be thepreviously recorded feed height established in training mode steps405-407 when pipe was delivered to the drilling rig (see FIG. 17) or anew pipe feed height may be recorded in a similar manner to thatdescribed above in connection with FIG. 17. At step 452, sensors inV-trough 300 determine whether a pipe is present. If no pipe isdetected, automatic operation is paused at step 453. If a pipe isdetected at step 452, V-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 are lowered instep 454 to their initial position level with trailer bed 302 and wherepipe kickers 309 may eject the pipe from the V-trough as describedabove. At step 455, sensors associated with picker arms 306 detectwhether picker arms are in their receiving position, in which the endsof picker arms are located below the level of trailer bed 302 to allowpipe ejected by pipe kickers 309 to roll onto picker arms 306 and cometo rest at stop 310. If picker arms are not in their receiving position,they are moved to that position in step 456.

After picker arms 306 are determined to be in their receiving positionat step 455, pipe kickers 309 are actuated in step 457 to eject pipe 22from V-trough 300 and caused to roll over trailer bed 302 and ontopicker arms 306. Picker arms 306 are thereafter lowered further to ahandoff position where pipe 22 is laid on top of top frame member 141 aof pipe indexer assembly 140 and picker arms are no longer in contactwith pipe 22. Tub control module 500 is activated at step 458 to actuateindexer assembly 140 as described below in connection with FIG. 24.Thereafter, picker arms 306 are returned to their receiving position andV-trough 300 and skate assembly 330 are raised to the feed height toreceive the next pipe.

Tubs 102 may be operated manually during the tub re-loading process byan operator using controls to actuate lift arms 150 and pipe indexer140. Alternatively, referring to FIG. 24, tub control module 500 mayoperate in an automatic mode to load pipe back into tubs 102 after theyhave been removed from the drilling rig as just described. At step 551,the active tub into which the pipe will be loaded may be selected. Thesensor associated with the selected tub may detect whether the selectedtub is full at step 552. If the selected tub is full, a new active tubmust be selected. The active tub may be closest to pipe handling trailer105 or there may be tubs in between the active tub and pipe handlingtrailer 105. In the latter case, crossover racks 134 are installed onthe intermediate tubs and drop-in racks 135 are installed between tubsto allow pipe to roll over the intermediate tubs and into the activetub. Alternatively, lift arms 150 in an empty intervening tub may beraised such that pipes can roll over raising arms 156 rather than usingcrossover racks. At step 553, lift arms 150 in the active tub may bebeen raised such that raising arms 156 are at a level slightly below thetop surface of top side frame member 121 to allow pipe to roll into tuband onto raising arms 156.

At step 554, the sensor on pipe indexer assembly 140 may sense whether apipe 22 is present on pipe indexer assembly 140. If no pipe is present,the automatic mode is paused until a pipe is sensed at step 555. If apipe is present on the indexer assembly, piston 149 may be actuated atstep 556 to rotate indexing plate 144 to lower projection 145 to allowpipe 22 to roll toward the active tub. Projection 145 may remain in thelowered position for the remainder of the rub re-loading process toallow pipes subsequently removed from pipe handling trailer 105 to rollinto the active tub or, alternatively, projection 145 may be raised andlowered as each pipe is removed from the pipe handling trailer. At step557, the sensor associated with the active tub senses whether a row inthe active tub has been completely filled. Alternatively, whether a rowhas been filled may be determined by counts made by sensors in drop-inracks 135 or on pipe indexer assembly 140. If a row has not been filled,steps 554-556 are repeated until a row is filled. Once a row has beenfilled, lift arms 150 are lowered at step 558 to lower the row of pipe.The operator is then alerted at step 559 to install spacers 170 over therow of pipe. Thereafter, automatic operation may resume at step 154.

Integrated Control System

Referring to FIG. 25, integrated control system 800 may include tub pipehandling trailer control module 400 and tub control module 500. Memory801 may receive information 802 about pipes 22 and tubs 102. Information802 may include the unique identification of each pipe, the type,height, diameter and weight of each pipe, and the order in which thepipes were loaded into the tubs. Information 802 may also include theunique identification of the tubs correlated to the information aboutthe pipes contained in each tub, as previously described. Information802 may be collected by a scanning device 803 or input manually 804 intoa terminal, tablet or smartphone as previously described. Memory 801 maybe any standard storage device such as a disk drive, FLASH drive, USBdrive, cloud storage or other device suitable for receiving information801 from scanner 803 or manual input 804. An operator may use a terminal805, such as a personal computer, laptop, tablet device, smartphone orother device that contains a processor for executing softwareinstructions and that is capable of communicating with memory 801 anddisplaying information about pipes 22 and tubs 102 to the operator andcapable of communicating command and other information signals to andfrom modules 400, 500.

Operator terminal 805 communicates with pipe handling trailer controlmodule 400 and tub control module 500 to control the automatic operationof pipe handling trailer 105 and tubs 102 as previously described. Forexample, an operator may use information 801 to use terminal 805 toselect the active tubs to off-load, and the order in which the tubs areoff-loaded, based on the identification, type or size of the pipescontained in the tubs. An operator may also use terminal 805 toinitiate, pause or terminate the automatic operation of pipe handlingtrailer 105 or tubs 102 as previously described. Pipe handling trailercontrol module 400 and tub control module 500 may be a computing devicemounted on pipe handling trailer 105 or tub 102, respectively, such as atablet, terminal or other specialized computing device capable ofexecuting software instructions and communicating with operator terminal805, receiving inputs 806 and 808, respectively, as described below, andoutputting signals to devices 807 and 809, respectively, as describedbelow. Modules 400, 500 may also each include a display 810, 811 toconvey information to an operator such as information 801 about pipes ortubs and/or the status of pipe handling trailer 105 or tub 102 such asan indication of whether a tub is the active tub, the position or statusof feet 110 and lift arms 150 of tub 102, the position or status ofV-trough 300, skate assembly 330, pop-up stop 370, picker arms 306, pipekickers 309 or pipe clamp 372.

In addition to receiving input from operator terminal 805, pipe handlingtrailer control module 400 may receive input 806 from the angular sensorassociated with V-trough 300, the rotary encoder associated with skateassembly 330 and sensors associated with picker arms 306. Pipe handlingtrailer control module 400 may activate devices 807 on the pipe handlingtrailer including V-trough hydraulic cylinder 320, skate drive motoractivating skate drive pulley 352, pop-up stop piston 374, pipe clampmotor 375, and picker arm hydraulic cylinders 308. In addition toreceiving input from operator terminal 805, tub control module 500 mayreceive input 808 from sensors associated with pipe indexer assembly140, drop-in racks 135 and tubs 102. Tub control module 500 may activatedevices 809 including tub feet motors 110, lift arm pistons 165 and pipeindexer pistons 149.

Whereas the preferred embodiments herein have been described as usingcertain equipment, it is understood that other equivalent mechanicalmechanisms may be substituted for the components described hereinwithout departing from the invention. For example, while the preferredembodiments are described as using pistons to effectuate many of themovements of the components, it should be understood that various linearactuators could be used, including hydraulic pistons, pneumatic pistonsor other mechanisms useful to impart linear movement. In addition, otheractuators, such as rotary actuators, may be used to effect rotationalmovements of components as described herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. An integrated pipe handling system comprising: amovable container for storing and transporting cylindrical objects; saidmovable container comprising a frame, and a lifting surface within saidcontainer capable of supporting said cylindrical objects in a raisedposition or a lowered position; a movable platform for receiving a saidcylindrical object from said movable container; said movable platformcomprising a bed, an angularly movable surface for moving saidcylindrical object at an angle with respect to said bed; and a skateslidably movable along said angularly movable surface for supportingsaid cylindrical object at a plurality of positions along said angularlymovable surface; a control system for controlling the operation of saidlift arm of said movable container and said angularly movable surfaceand said skate of said movable platform; said control system beingcapable of storing information about said cylindrical objects stored insaid movable container, and controlling the operation of said lift arm,said angularly movable surface and said skate.
 2. The integrated pipehandling system of claim 1, wherein said control system furthercomprises a memory; and said memory stores information about saidcylindrical objects.
 3. The integrated pipe handling system of claim 2,wherein said memory further stores information about said movablecontainer.
 4. The integrated pipe handling system of claim 2, whereinsaid information about said cylindrical objects is selected from thegroup consisting of a unique identifier associated with said cylindricalobject, the number, type, length, diameter and weight of saidcylindrical objects and the order in which said cylindrical objects werepreviously loaded into said movable container.
 5. The integrated pipehandling system of claim 4, wherein said cylindrical objects areselected from the group consisting of drill pipe joints, well casingjoints and well completion tubing.
 6. The integrated pipe handlingsystem of claim 3, wherein said information about said movable containeris selected from the group consisting of a unique identifier associatedwith said movable container and information about said cylindricalobjects loaded within said container.
 7. The integrated pipe handlingsystem of claim 4, wherein said unique identifier associated with saidcylindrical object is contained in a bar code or RFID tag.
 8. Theintegrated pipe handling system of claim 6, wherein said uniqueidentifier associated with said movable container is contained in a barcode or RFID tag.
 9. The integrated pipe handling system of claim 1,wherein said movable container further comprises an indexing rackdisposed on at least one of said side frame members and said movableplatform further comprises a picker arm pivotally mounted to saidmovable platform for manipulating said cylindrical objects; saidindexing rack and said picker arm are positioned such that saidcylindrical object may be transferred from said indexing rack to saidpicker arm or from said picker arm to said indexing rack.
 10. Theintegrated pipe handling system of claim 9, wherein said indexing rackcomprises a frame that supports cylindrical objects thereon; saidindexing rack frame further comprises a fixed projection and a movableprojection, whereby when said movable projection is in a first position,a cylindrical object is prevented from rolling over said indexing rackframe and when said movable projection is in a second position, acylindrical object to permitted to toll over said indexing rack frame.11. The integrated pipe handling system of claim 1, wherein said controlsystem causes said angularly movable surface and said skate to move saidcylindrical object on said angularly movable surface to a feed position;said control module records said feed position; and said control modulecauses said angularly movable surface and said skate to move saidcylindrical object on said angularly movable surface to said recordedfeed position during a subsequent operation of said movable platform.12. The integrated pipe handling system of claim 1, wherein saidangularly movable surface further comprises a pop-up stop movablebetween a lowered position and a raised position, whereby said pop-upstop is capable of contacting an end of said cylindrical object whensaid pop-up stop is in said raised position.
 13. The integrated pipehandling system of claim 12, wherein said control system causes saidangularly movable surface and said skate to move a cylindrical object onsaid angularly movable surface to a position in which said cylindricalobject contacts said pop-up stop when said pop-up stop is in said raisedposition.
 14. The integrated pipe handling system of claim 13, whereininformation about the length of said cylindrical object on saidangularly movable surface is transmitted to said control system whensaid cylindrical object is in contact with said pop-up stop.
 15. Theintegrated pipe handling system of claim 1, wherein said lifting surfacecomprises a lift arm pivotally mounted to said frame.
 16. The integratedpipe handling system of claim 1, wherein said angularly movable surfacefurther comprises a pipe clamp movable from a raised position to alowered position in which said pipe clamp is capable of engaging saidcylindrical object.
 17. The integrated pipe handling system of claim 1,wherein said control system is operated in a manual mode.
 18. Theintegrated pipe handling system of claim 1, wherein said control systemis operated in an automatic mode.
 19. The integrated pipe handlingsystem of claim 1, wherein said movable container and said movableplatform are arranged such that the slope of a plane parallel to the topof said movable container is inclined at an angle with respect to saidmovable platform.
 20. The integrated pipe handling system of claim 20,wherein said slope is approximately 1.5° relative to the ground.
 21. Acontainer for storing and transporting cylindrical objects comprising: aframe comprising side frame members and end frame members; a liftingsurface within said container capable of supporting said cylindricalobjects in a raised position or a lowered position.
 22. The container ofclaim 21, wherein said lifting surface comprises a lift arm pivotallymounted to said frame.
 23. The container of claim 22 further comprising:a mechanism for moving said lift arm from said raised position to saidlowered position and from said lowered position to said raised position.24. The container of claim 23 wherein said mechanism comprises a piston.25. The container of claim 21 further comprising: a crossover rackdisposed between said side frame members that allows said cylindricalobjects to roll over said container.
 26. The container of claim 21further comprising: a rack disposed on at least one of said side framemembers that allows said cylindrical objects to roll from said movablecontainer to a second movable container.
 27. The container of claim 21further comprising: a rack disposed on at least one of said side framemembers that allows said cylindrical objects to roll into said movablecontainer.
 28. The container of claim 21 further comprising: an indexingrack disposed on at least one of said side frame members; said indexingrack comprising a frame that supports cylindrical objects thereon; saidindexing rack frame further comprising a fixed projection and a movableprojection, whereby when said movable projection is in a first position,a cylindrical object is prevented from rolling over said indexing rackframe and when said movable projection is in a second position, acylindrical object to permitted to toll over said indexing rack frame.29. The container of claim 21, further comprising: adjustable feetcapable of adjusting the orientation of said container with respect tothe ground.
 30. The container of claim 21, further comprising: a controlmodule capable of controlling the position of said lifting surface. 31.The container of claim 21, further comprising: a sensor disposed withinsaid container to sense the presence of said cylindrical objects. 32.The container of claim 21 wherein said cylindrical objects are selectedfrom the group consisting of drill pipe joints, well casing joints andwell completion tubing.
 33. The container of claim 30 wherein saidcontrol module is operated in a manual mode.
 34. The container of claim30 wherein said control module is operated in an automatic mode.
 35. Amovable platform for handling cylindrical objects comprising: a bed, anangularly movable surface for receiving a said cylindrical object andmoving said cylindrical object at an angle with respect to said bed; anda skate slidably movable along said angularly movable surface forsupporting said cylindrical object on said angularly movable surface ata plurality of positions along said angularly movable surface.
 36. Themovable platform of claim 35, further comprising: a picker arm pivotallymounted to said movable platform for manipulating said cylindricalobjects.
 37. The movable platform of claim 35, further comprising:adjustable landing gear capable of adjusting the orientation of saidmovable platform with respect to the ground.
 38. The movable platform ofclaim 35, further comprising: an ejection mechanism capable of ejectinga cylindrical object from said angularly movable surface.
 39. Themovable platform of claim 35, wherein said angularly movable surfacefurther comprises a pop-up stop movable between a lowered position and araised position, whereby when said pop-up stop is capable of contactingan end of said cylindrical object when said pop-up stop is in saidraised position.
 40. The movable platform of claim 35, wherein saidskate comprises a first skate body portion movably connected to a secondskate body portion.
 41. The movable platform of claim 35, wherein saidskate comprises a clamp movable between a raised position and a loweredposition, whereby said clamp is capable of contacting said cylindricalobject when said clamp is in said lowered position.
 42. The movableplatform of claim 41, wherein said clamp engages said cylindrical objectand causes said cylindrical object to move with skate along saidangularly movable surface.
 43. The movable platform of claim 42, whereinsaid skate further comprises a first skate body portion movablyconnected to a second skate body portion and said clamp is pivotallymounted on said first skate body portion and said second skate bodyportion such that said clamp is in said lowered position when said firstskate body portion is in a first position relative to said second skatebody portion and said clamp is in said raised position when said skatebody portion is in a second position relative to said second skate bodyportion.
 44. The movable platform of claim 35, further comprising: acontrol module capable of controlling the position of said angularlymovable surface and said skate.
 45. The movable platform of claim 44,wherein said control module causes said angularly movable surface andsaid skate to move said cylindrical object on said angularly movablesurface to a feed position; said control module records said feedposition; and said control module causes said angularly movable surfaceand said skate to move said cylindrical object on said angularly movablesurface to said recorded feed position during a subsequent operation ofsaid movable platform.
 46. The movable platform of claim 35, whereinsaid angularly movable surface further comprises a pipe clamp movablefrom a raised position to a lowered position in which said pipe clamp iscapable of engaging said cylindrical object.
 47. The movable platform ofclaim 44, wherein said control module is operated in a manual mode. 48.The movable platform of claim 44, wherein said control module isoperated in an automatic mode.
 49. A method of loading a movablecontainer with cylindrical objects comprising the steps of: providing amovable container comprising a frame, and a lifting surface within saidcontainer capable of supporting said cylindrical objects in a raisedposition or a lowered position; raising said lifting surface to saidraised position; causing a row of said cylindrical objects to roll oversaid frame and onto said lifting surface; lowering said lifting surfaceto said lowered position; alerting an operator to install a spacer abovesaid row of cylindrical objects; and causing a second row of cylindricalobjects to roll over said frame and onto said spacer.
 50. The method ofclaim 49, wherein said cylindrical objects are selected from the groupconsisting of drill pipe joints, well casing joints and well completiontubing.
 51. The method of claim 50, further comprising the step ofgathering information about said cylindrical objects and storing saidinformation in memory.
 52. The method of claim 51, wherein saidinformation about said cylindrical objects is selected from the groupconsisting of a unique identifier associated with said cylindricalobjects, the number, type, length, diameter and weight of saidcylindrical objects and the order in which said cylindrical objects wereloaded into said movable container.
 53. The method of claim 52, furthercomprising the step of gathering information about said movablecontainer and storing said information in memory.
 54. The method ofclaim 53, where said information about said movable container isselected from the group consisting of a unique identifier associatedwith said movable container and information about said cylindricalobjects loaded within said container.
 55. The method of claim 54,wherein said unique identifier associated with said cylindrical objectis contained in a bar code or RFID tag.
 56. A method of transferringcylindrical objects from a movable container to a movable platformcomprising the steps of: providing a movable container comprising aframe, and a lifting surface within said container capable of supportingsaid cylindrical objects in a raised position or a lowered position, anindexing rack disposed on said frame, and cylindrical objects loaded insaid movable container; providing a movable platform comprising a bed,an angularly movable surface for receiving a said cylindrical object andmoving said cylindrical object at an angle with respect to said bed, askate slidably movable along said angularly movable surface forsupporting said cylindrical object on said angularly movable surface ata plurality of positions along said angularly movable surface, and apicker arm pivotally mounted to said movable platform for manipulatingsaid cylindrical objects; raising said lifting surface to a positionwhereby said cylindrical objects may roll over said frame of saidmovable container onto said indexing rack; raising said picker arm to afirst position whereby one said cylindrical object is lifted from saidindexing rack and onto said picker arm; and raising said picker arm to asecond position whereby said cylindrical object may roll from saidpicker arm and onto said angularly movable surface.
 57. The method ofclaim 56, wherein said cylindrical objects are selected from the groupconsisting of drill pipe joints, well casing joints and well completiontubing.
 58. The method of claim 57, further comprising the steps of:providing a plurality of said movable containers; providing a controlsystem in communication with a memory; storing information about saidcylindrical objects and said movable containers in said memory; allowingan operator to choose an active movable container from which cylindricalobjects are transferred to said movable platform based on said storedinformation about said cylindrical objects and said movable containers.59. The method of claim 58, wherein said stored information about saidcylindrical objects is selected from the group consisting of a uniqueidentifier associated with said cylindrical objects, the number, type,length, diameter and weight of said cylindrical objects and the order inwhich said cylindrical objects were previously loaded into said movablecontainers.
 60. The method of claim 58, wherein said stored informationabout said movable container is selected from the group consisting of aunique identifier associated with said movable container and informationabout said cylindrical objects loaded within said container.
 61. Themethod of claim 56, wherein said movable container and said movableplatform are arranged such that the slope of a plane parallel to the topof said movable container is inclined at an angle with respect to saidmovable platform.
 62. The method of claim 61, wherein said slope isapproximately 1.5° relative to the ground.
 63. The method of claim 58,wherein said control system is operated in a manual mode.
 64. The methodof claim 58, wherein said control system is operated in an automaticmode.
 65. A method of raising a cylindrical object on a movable platformto a feed position comprising the steps of: providing a movable platformcomprising a bed, an angularly movable surface for receiving a saidcylindrical object and moving said cylindrical object at an angle withrespect to said bed, and a skate slidably movable along said angularlymovable surface for supporting said cylindrical object on said angularlymovable surface at a plurality of positions along said angularly movablesurface; causing said angularly movable surface and said skate to movesaid cylindrical object on said angularly movable surface from aposition generally parallel to said bed to said feed position.
 66. Themethod of claim 65, wherein said cylindrical object is selected from thegroup consisting of drill pipe joints, well casing joints and wellcompletion tubing.
 67. The method of claim 66, further comprising thesteps of; providing a pop-up stop on said angularly movable surface,said pop-up stop movable between a lowered position and a raisedposition; raising said pop-up stop to said raised position; causing saidangularly movable surface and said skate to move said cylindrical objecton said angularly movable surface to a position in which saidcylindrical object contacts said pop-up stop; and transmittinginformation about the length of said cylindrical object on saidangularly movable surface to a control system when said cylindricalobject is in contact with said pop-up stop.
 68. The method of claim 66,further comprising the steps of: providing a control module; causingsaid angularly movable surface and said skate to move said cylindricalobject on said angularly movable surface to a feed position; recordingsaid feed position in a memory associated with said control module;causing said angularly movable surface and said skate to move saidcylindrical object on said angularly movable surface to said recordedfeed position during a subsequent operation of said movable platform.69. The method of claim 66, wherein said feed position is locatedproximate to a floor of a drilling rig.
 70. The method of claim 66,further comprising the steps of providing a pipe clamp; and loweringsaid pipe clamp into engagement with said cylindrical object.
 71. Themethod of claim 68, wherein said control module is operated in a manualmode.
 72. The method of claim 68, wherein said control module isoperated in an automatic mode.
 73. The method of claim 65, wherein saidfeed position is located proximate to a floor of a drilling rig
 74. Amethod of lowering a cylindrical object to a movable platform from afeed position comprising the steps of: providing a movable platformcomprising a bed, an angularly movable surface for receiving a saidcylindrical object and moving said cylindrical object at an angle withrespect to said bed, and a skate slidably movable along said angularlymovable surface for supporting said cylindrical object on said angularlymovable surface at a plurality of positions along said angularly movablesurface; causing said angularly movable surface and said skate to movesaid cylindrical object on said angularly movable surface from said feedposition to a position generally parallel to said bed.
 75. The method ofclaim 74, wherein said cylindrical object is selected from the groupconsisting of drill pipe joints, well casing joints and well completiontubing.
 76. The method of claim 74, wherein said feed position islocated proximate to a floor of a drilling rig.
 77. A method oftransferring cylindrical objects from a movable platform to a movablecontainer comprising the steps of: providing a movable platformcomprising a bed, an angularly movable surface for containing a saidcylindrical object and moving said cylindrical object at an angle withrespect to said bed, a skate slidably movable along said angularlymovable surface for supporting said cylindrical object on said angularlymovable surface at a plurality of positions along said angularly movablesurface, an ejection mechanism capable of ejecting said cylindricalobject from said angularly movable surface, and a picker arm pivotallymounted to said movable platform for manipulating said cylindricalobject; providing a movable container comprising a frame, and a liftingsurface within said container capable of supporting said cylindricalobject in a raised position or a lowered position, and an indexing rackdisposed on said frame; raising said lifting surface to a positionwhereby said cylindrical objects may roll over said frame of saidmovable container from said indexing rack; activating said ejectionmechanism to eject said cylindrical object from said angularly movablesurface and onto said picker arm in a first position; lowering saidpicker arm to a second position whereby said cylindrical object contactsand is supported by said indexing rack; and allowing said cylindricalobject to roll from said indexing rack over said frame of said movablecontainer and into said movable container.
 78. The method of claim 77,wherein said cylindrical objects are selected from the group consistingof drill pipe joints, well casing joints and well completion tubing. 79.The method of claim 78, wherein said movable container and said movableplatform are arranged such that the slope of a plane parallel to the topof said movable container is inclined at an angle with respect to saidmovable platform.
 80. The method of claim 79, wherein said slope isapproximately 1.5° relative to the ground.